The present invention relates to a stacked electrical connector assembly, and particularly to a modular stacked electrical connector assembly which can be easily modified to accommodate different connector requirements.
The trend today is to position more electrical connectors on a circuit board to accommodate the connection of an increasing number of peripheral devices to a computer. Taiwan Patent Application No. 85103162 describes a horizontally stacked connector assembly for mounting onto an edge of a circuit board. The horizontally stacked connector assembly comprises a plurality of mating openings horizontally aligned in an elongate housing for receiving corresponding mating connectors. The housing extends along the edge of a circuit board and is thus limited by the dimension of the edge of the circuit board, therefore, the number of mating connectors is also limited.
Another type of stacked connector assembly for efficiently using space on a circuit board is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,639,267; 5,531,612 and 5,562,507 and in Taiwan Patent Application Nos. 84109709 and 86207512. These stacked connector assemblies commonly comprise an elongate main housing, upper and lower rows of horizontally aligned mating openings vertically aligned in the main housing for receiving corresponding mating connectors, and a plurality of first and second insert members retaining contacts therein and being respectively received in the corresponding mating openings for engaging with the corresponding mating connectors. The upper row of mating openings is usually arranged in a mirror image of the lower row.
However, the number of the mating openings of this type of stacked connector assembly is also limited since the stacked connector assembly is commonly mounted on an edge of the circuit board and the length of the edge is limited. Moreover, since the position and the length of the stacked connector assembly is usually pre-designated on the circuit board, it is difficult to change the position and length of the stacked connector assembly to account for changes in performance required. The stacked connector assembly can only engage with the specific mating connectors included in its design thereby limiting its application. Additionally, the insert members received in the upper row of mating openings are different from the insert members received in the lower row, thereby complicating the manufacture and increasing the cost of the insert members.